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The World of Georic 1989-Present

Friday, November 19, 2010

Look! An innocent poll! Hide it from the Germans!

Next April 8-10 will be Mepacon XX, again up at the Ramada in Clarks Summit. For a bi-annual conventions, that means ten long years of consistency, which nearly impossible for gamers to do. Hell, editions of D&D come out in more frequent intervals!

For the last con (XIX), I ran two events for entirely different reason. The Hackmaster game was by request, and although Steve 'The Drow Guy' Heitzer did not play in what he asked for, it filled a vital niche for the 9am Saturday time slot.

The second game I based on history. Ed Lehman, the convention director, had previously alluded to ten years of Mepacon, and I felt it proper to run a 'Best of' event. Not best of my Mepacon games, rather one of the best convention games I've ever run. The Toon, Cthulhu
Comes to Springfield was epic in scope and in play, and nostalgia did not obscure that a week ago at the con.

For Mepacon XX, I want to continue this tradition of running a new game, followed by one or two 'Best of' games which should guarantee filled seats (if they know what's good for them!)

To the left should be the official 'What Should I Run at Mepacon XX' poll, which is running until the end of November. You may vote for multiple events, but definitely vote for the ones you would be interested in playing in, if you could make it to the con:

Descriptions:
Talislanta: The Crystle Dungeon -- This was my first convention game I ever ran. Friday Evening, Lehicon IV. Three players younger than me, what little story my teenage mind had constructed turned to bashing Darklings and smashing around Gnomekins. I would probably used 3rd Edition (WoTC), although with the free downloads, I might check out the lastest edition.

Toon: Cthulhu Comes to Springfield 2 - Electric Disco Stu-- The original game had at least eight 'episodes', so there is room for more stories, and more characters: I already have requests for Dr. Nick, Comic Book Guy, Otto. The core characters are down, now we can have some fun (with the Mexican Bee Guy). It's not on the poll, the Family Guy Cthulhu was batted around as well.

Gnome Wars: The Tanga Campaign-- Yes, yes, this will become a reality for the Society of Neffs gamers, but it the boards as to be constructed, might as well share the joy. Historical fighting in German Southeast Africa during the first year of World War I.... with gnomes. If I'm bringing one board and figs, I might as well do three rounds.

GURPS-IOU: Scavenger Hunt! and other Disasters-- Perhaps the most epic role-playing experiences I have ever conducted as a solo GM, Illuminati University is comedy gold and role-playing platinum. Ran like it was back in the day, with GURPS, 3rd Edition. Two or three rounds of this might make them kick us out of the con!

Hackmaster - "Sideways" Dungeons-- A "New" idea for an event. Most people are familiar with "Reverse" dungeons: players taking the roles of the monsters, defending themselves against adventurers, even going on the offensive if they can. "Sideways" dungeons are using the classic modules, but having the players run PCs who are inhabitants (but not monsters). I've run B10, and B4: The Lost City from the perspective of the inhabitants of the lost civilizations, with mixed results. I'm tempted to use X1: The Isle of Dread, or B3: The Palace of the Silver Princess a whirl with it.

Buring Plastic: Polymers in Flames-- Burning Plastic is either one of the biggest draws of the con, or the biggest bust. One of the most memorable games is a Bogglecon at the Easton Inn with 16 players, and yet no one ended up in the adjacent pool! I'll try harder this time. I might possibly be able to run my "King of the Hill" scenario to its wonderful completion.

TWERPS: To Impossibility and Beyond-- TWERPS, "The World's Easiest Role-Playing System" began my downward spiral towards minimalist systems all the way back in 1993. It is elegantly simple almost to a fault, and we've just about any type of genre with it (There are a 13 suuplements to it). One of my favorite games was a Space Cadets-styled game with a Flash Gordon feel of adventure and a Barney Fife school of execution. This version of TWERPS would include one group, we always alluded to, but never implemented in-game: The Gnomish Space Marines. (We're all part of the Gnomish Space Marines, the Gnomish Space Marines, the Gnomish Space Marines...)

Call of Cthulhu: The Wrath of Novez-- "New Game" The Wrath of Novez has been the CoC Modern game I've been tinkering with for years. It's a campaign that one part X-Files, one part Mythbusters, and one part modern pulp goodness, all set in a world where both Ghostbusters movies actually took place. Everyone and their brother are smacking down ectoplasmic entities that no one notices the actual horrors walking just inside the shadows from the light of humanity. Wrath would be set up in an on-going campaign style a la The Drow Game, Larry Ander's Dragonlance game, or even some of the Star Wars games of the past.

Basic D&D: Return to Gygar's Castle: "New Game" This one might take some assistance from other players. Full blown D&D game, minis, terrain, the whole shebang. I put down Basic D&D, but I might mean White Box, Holmes, Mentzer, or even worse, 3.0. I've had this one in my head for five years and used different systems for execution (of the game, not the characters...) I just need some temporary "donations" for the length of the con.

There they are folks, and if you think of something cool that I missed, mention it in the comments.

And no, I'm not doing another LARP!

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